When Worlds Collide
by Black Rose Kalli
Summary: We all know the theory, many universes stacked up against each other, but what if it was true? What if you could see into one of them? That's what one young scientist thought, but will his mistake prove to be the end of the world? Not if his assistant has anything to do with it. Based mid way through Thor The Dark World, LokixOC pairing. NOTE RATING!
1. Unexpected Results

Hey guys, back again with a new story. I've had this one floating around in my brain for a while now and I'm happy to say that I've finally got the time to put it to paper...metaphorically speaking. I'm taking quite a few liberties here, so don't expect a play by play of the movie because you will be disappointed. Sorry if the characters are a wee bit OOC, I'm having a little trouble reconciling character to story. Don't worry, I'm working it out, but let me know if anything can be improved.

I own nothing but Riley, James and the story and any grammar/spelling mistakes as this is unbeta'd. And now without further ado, the story!

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Unexpected Results

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James was toiling in his lab, as per usual. His assistant Riley was waiting patiently at her usual post by the fire extinguisher and first aid kit, making bets in her mind about exactly how long it would be before either, or both, were needed. She laughed quietly to herself as various incidents over the past seven years flashed through her mind, starting with the first day she'd ever met the man who had since become her friend.

_She had been running late, on her way to interview for the assistant position she now held. She hadn't had much hope for actually getting it, seeing as she was just a Statistics major in the masters program, but it had seemed easy enough and she'd really needed the money. It had been raining hard that day, not unusual weather for late April, especially in southern Louisiana, but Riley had forgotten her umbrella that day. As a consequence, when she finally arrived at the small warehouse like lab where her interview was taking place, she looked more like a sodden sheep dog than the confident young professional she had been when she'd left her apartment. James had run the interview himself, offering her a towel and some tea to calm her nerves. She'd refused, she'd never liked tea much, and they'd shared a laugh over coffee, turned out James didn't care much for tea either. It had been the first of many similarities they'd discovered over the course of the interview. The interview itself lasted almost three hours, though it could hardly be called that after the first half hour. They'd discussed everything from comics to the sci-fi shows they both enjoyed. By the end of it, he'd offered her the job and asked her out to coffee the next day. He'd given her his umbrella on the way out, joking that he wouldn't want to lose the best candidate he'd met to a cold._

_From the next day on, they had become fast friends. It had been a little hard for her at first, getting used to his moods and strange bouts of what she liked to call "engineer rage", but eventually they developed a nice rhythm. She would bring him a caramel mocha and two glazed donuts every morning and sit at the small table in the corner of the large room and eat her chocolate lucky charms while watching him set up his equipment. She had started out trying to get her food and coffee out of the way before heading into the lab, but that had proved far more problematic than she'd expected so she'd taken to keeping some of her dishes and food in the small kitchenette that James had at the lab. Since then it had been the same routine every day. She'd always had plans of bringing in appliances, a waffle maker, a grittle, maybe some cooking utensils and a hot plate, but she'd never gotten around to it. Besides, James used so much of the lab's power that any appliances she used would probably have tripped a breaker somewhere and wrecked one of his experiments, which would have sent him into a tail spin that would probably have gotten her fired._

_It was about a year in when the first of many accidents occurred. James had been working on some kind of anti gravity theory, building a rig of concentric rings that a person could, theoretically, strap themselves into and have a kind of anti gravity field put around them. It hadn't come to anything, due in large part to the fact that the rig exploded during the first test run, but also, James had said, to a miscalculation in his equation. The explosion wasn't anything too damaging, mostly just a lot of smoke and a few flying screws, but the blast wave was enough to knock James back into his desk. He'd received three broken ribs and a few cuts and bruises from the blow, most of which Riley had treated herself while the ambulance was on route, but that was when James had decided to make her his official first aid assistant. It was added to her list of duties that she would treat all minor cuts, sprains, abrasions and burns that he acquired during all of his experiments. She'd refused at first, saying, truthfully, that she had no experience what-so-ever with first aid, but he'd insisted, saying he trusted her to know when professional medical attention was needed and when he was, to use his words, just being a baby about it._

And that was how things had been for the past seven years. She'd slowly become inured to all of his many moods, learned to ignore when he would shout at thin air like there was someone else to blame for the mistakes he made, laughed at all the small swears he'd invented for every knocked knee and stubbed toe. She'd learned how to treat everything from paper cuts to minor burns, how to wrap sprained joints and how to soothe the sometimes infantile whining that James would go through whenever he got injured.

All of this flashed through her mind as she watched him prance around his most recent creation. She'd never quite understood the concept behind it, something about the "multi-universe theory" and breaking through walls, but she'd tuned him out when he'd started into the details of the science behind how it was supposed to work. She'd tried multiple times to explain to him that she understood numbers and numbers only, but he seemed to think that since she understood the statistics of the situation, she would also understand the quantum theory that sparked it. All she knew for sure was that he was about to flip the switch that would turn it on and she should probably be ready to put out any fires that cropped up after the inevitable explosion.

"This is it Rye, I can feel it! This one is gonna work!" He shouted from the other side of the room, rubbing his hands together as he eyed the giant lever he'd attached to the machine. He'd always had a fondness for the kind of machines you'd see in old monster movies, lots of Tesla coils and enormous switches that sparked as they were activated. Riley had always had a pet theory that they were part of the reason his experiments always failed.

"Oh most definitely, I can feel it in my bones." She gave him a thumbs up, keeping her hand on the extinguisher. He seemed to miss the sarcasm that laced her words as he returned the thumbs up and heaved on the lever, setting off a shower of sparks and the hum of machinery coming to life. She braced herself, waiting for the boom and the shock wave, but she was met with nothing but the quiet whir of computers and the whine of metal on metal as the rings on the machine began to spin. It was set up like something out of a sci-fi novel, three sets of concentric rings, rotating so fast that the indentations in the metal seemed to blur out of existence. The first and third ring were spinning clockwise but the middle ring was spinning counter-clockwise, creating a kind of optical illusion of the diameter of the whole thing shrinking and growing as it spun. After a minute she began to relax, taking her hand off the fire extinguisher and edging slowly toward her chair, watching as James ran to the rings, shouting in victory as a small blue orb began to form in the middle, slowly growing until an image became visible.

"It's working! Riley, it's working! Aha!" He threw a fist in the air, doing a strange little dance that he'd coined his "victory dance". He'd been saving it for the day one of his theories paid off.

"James, focus! What happens next?" She shouted over the growing roar of the machines. It didn't sound like something a working piece of machinery should make, but the scientist in the room didn't seem worried so she tried to put it out of her mind, focusing instead on the image that was slowly growing inside the ring. It seemed like empty sky to her, something that you could walk outside and see, but James was acting like it was some kind of ground breaking sky line that no one had ever seen before.

"Right, of course, thank you. Now we see where we came out at." He started slowly toward the image, still growing, opening to reveal a strange sky line of beautiful buildings. They were of a construction she'd never seen before, all gilt golden spires and high arches. But the thing that really caught her attention was the flat, bridge like crystal that stretched through the arches toward the skyline. It was the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen, shining in all the colors of the rainbow under a sun so big and bright that it didn't seem real. There appeared to be things flying in the air. They looked like old style ships, wings on the edges, curved hulls and no sails. But they weren't in the water, they were flying just under the bridge, the figures inside barely large enough to register as lines against the back drop of the sky.

James started shouting again, whooping and jumping around, calling out a name, though Riley couldn't hear it over the near deafening roar coming from the portal. He was recounting all the details he could see, telling her to write them down, though it was useless as he was doing that himself. He was talking about how clear it all was, like he could just step through, though he'd said that was impossible. That had been the one part of the explanation she had understood, mostly because it was the one part she'd been worried about. He'd assured her more than once that this portal was nothing but a window, a way to see into the other dimensions that existed along side their own while remaining safe from any environmental differences or threats that may be in them.

She kept this in mind as she took a few tentative steps forward, her eyes glued to the small ship in the portal, mesmerized by the way it seemed to sail through the air, avoiding shots fired from another ship that was coming up behind it.

"What is it? Where is this at?" She came even with James, her head moving over the scene as more questions began to form.

"I have no idea. It's some kind of Earth like environment from what I can tell. Blue sky, blue water, green leaves, all indicative of an oxygen rich atmosphere. Other than that, I got nothing. This is the fun part, just sit back, watch and investigate." He pulled up a chair, sitting down with his notebook on his knees, jotting down notes almost constantly.

"Are they supposed to be getting bigger? I mean, they aren't gonna hit the portal thing are they?" She watched as the ship grew bigger, seemingly headed straight for them.

"No, they'll just pass right through it, they can't even see it, it's just an invisible little window, like a pocket dimension that only goes one way." He gestured as he spoke, talking more with his hands than he was with his lips. But none of it seemed to put Riley at ease. She had a feeling, something she'd learned to trust a long time ago, that something was about to happen. It was this feeling that propelled her back to the fire extinguisher and first aid kit, still set out on the table.

As she opened her mouth to voice her concern to her friend, a kind of ringing began, just on the edge of her hearing, growing slowly until both James and Riley were doubled over, backing away from the portal, hands over their ears as if that could stop the pain. It was enough to have tears streaming from her eyes, her own cries added to the din. It rose to a fever pitch as the vessel in the portal drew even with the portal and then the world exploded around her. It was like a million windows shattered all around her at the same time, showering her with the fragile, high pitched sound of shards exploding outward as the ship flew straight through the set of rings. The rings themselves, true to form, followed suit and promptly flew apart, scattering metal and plastic all over the room. The last thing Riley knew, before darkness took her, was the sound of metal grinding against concrete and the sound of four other bodies dropping to the floor.

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"Answer me mortal. Where are we?" The shouting was what drew her out of her unconscious, where she'd been happily working her way through a mountain of nice boring paper work. She was greeted with much more light than she was used to in the lab and the sound of booted feet coming close to her.

"Brother, calm yourself, there is another over here." This voice was different than the one who had been shouting. It sounded kinder, though no less foreign. She felt arms wrap around her knees and shoulders, lifting her from the floor and onto the table. A face swam into her vision, blurry at first. She saw a tousle of blonde hair and, as her vision began to sharpen, very handsome features. "Ah, you are awake, good." He stepped away, letting her sit up on her own.

"What happened?" She shook her head, trying to clear it of the fog that remained.

"Riley, are you ok?" James appeared at her side, followed closely by another stranger, this one almost the exact opposite of the blonde who'd put her on the table. He was still handsome, more so than the blonde, but he seemed harder, colder, his eyes didn't have the same kindness in them that the blonde one had and his hair was much darker, a shade of black she'd only ever seen on the goth kids she used to see around campus.

"Yeah, I think so, just kinda fuzzy. What happened? Who are these guys? Why are you bleeding?" She reached out to his face, wiping blood from the sides of his face.

"Enough! Explain, now." The black haired one pulled James around to face him.

"I...I don't know. None of this makes sense. This shouldn't have happened. We had a window into your world, but it was just a window. Nothing should've been able to come through." He babbled out all the relevant facts he could, holding his hands up in the air like that would defuse the whole situation.

"Window, what do you mean?" A woman's voice piped up from just out of Riley's field of vision, drawing her gaze to a slim young woman standing in the wreckage of the ship she'd been admiring in the portal. She seemed like she'd been recently ill, or still was. She was pale and her eyes were shining feverishly.

"Well, it's a theory I've been working on. It's based on the Multi-verse theory. I built a machine that could create kind of a pocket dimension, a one way window into other universes. It was supposed to be completely nonexistent on your end. Something happened that made it a door, but the portal wasn't meant to act that way." He took the explanation as an excuse to move away from the still glowering brunette that was looking ever more murderous.

"Wait. So you actually built an inter-dimensional portal? How?" The woman seemed to perk up at his explanation, stepping out of the ship and walking toward him. As they neared each other, the ringing resumed, skipping over the build up, exploding in Riley's mind as the portal appeared in the remains of the rings, showing another area, desolate and barren of any sign of life, save for two figures. One was pale, skin white as a sheet of paper, wearing black armor. The other was monstrous, taller than any human she'd ever seen and black as volcanic rock. His skin seemed to have almost the same texture as well, seeming more like stone than flesh. They were looking at the portal, walking toward it as though they meant to pass straight through. The pale one got close enough that Riley could see his eyes, staring into her soul with a kind of hatred that made her blood run cold. He reached out, inches from her world as the portal snapped shut again, taking the ringing with it.

"James, what the hell was that? I thought the damn thing was broken." She tried to keep the anger out of her voice, knowing that he would be shaken already, but this had never been in her job description, and friend or not, she was not prepared to handle this kind of thing.

"I have no idea. The portal shouldn't be able to open without the apparatus to power it." He turned to her, his whole body shaking, his eyes already swimming with unshed tears.

"Unless the tear you made is unstable." The woman was at his side in an instant. He turned to her, his eyes taking on the brightness she'd seen whenever he was around another scientist and the conversation dissolved into something she couldn't hope to follow.

"Oh great." Riley slid forward, stepping down onto the floor and checking her balance before moving to the small fridge. She pulled out a bottle of Dr. Pepper, leaning against the counter with a sigh. "So, while they work themselves up, how about some details? What happened on your end?" She directed her questions to the blonde one, not wanting to provoke the brunette any further.

"Nothing more than what I assume you saw. We were flying our ship away from our home and then we went through some sort of tunnel. It was very loud, like a ringing in my ears, and then we were here. If my brother had not stopped the ship when he did, we would have been injured." He seemed genuinely confused, not surprising considering what he'd just gone through, but her instincts told her there was more to this than what they'd seen.

"What is your name, Mortal." The brunette fixed her with a withering stare.

"It's Riley, Riley Mitchell. What about you?" She crossed her arms over her chest, cocking a hip out as she felt her inner bitch rising to the surface.

"I am Loki." He drew himself up to his full height, taking on a kind of regal air, though it seemed a little tarnished.

"Right, okay." She turned, setting her soda on the counter and sighing.

"You do not believe us." The blonde laughed as he walked closer.

"Yeah, no kidding." She turned back, trying to force a smile as she walked past him to where her coat was hanging, digging a pack of cigarettes and her Zippo lighter out of the inside pocket. She had it in her mouth and lit before either of the men could blink.

"Riley! You know it hate it when you smoke in here." James shouted from across the room, not even turning.

"And I hate it when apparently fictional characters pop into your lab space but it didn't stop you!" She shouted back.

"Fictional? What do you mean by this?" Loki walked toward her, his threatening air backing down in the face of a mystery.

"You guys, Loki and I'm assuming Thor, you guys aren't real, at least, not here. I mean you exist in the old Norse religion as well as in a really long running comic book series, but there are no real people called Loki and Thor. Actually, come to think of it, you guys look a lot like the movie versions of your characters." She tapped the ash off her cigarette, taking in the details of Loki's face.

"Movie? What is a movie?" Loki asked, narrowing his eyes slightly at her questions his existence.

"It's a form of media, a series of rapidly moving pictures paired with a sound track, all captured by cameras and put together in a studio, and none of this is making sense to you is it?" She took a long drag from her cigarette, laughing softly as the strangeness of the situation set in on her. "Okay guys, I know you probably have a lot of questions, but I cannot do this right now. I'm gonna leave you with the scientist, he's got more knowledge about this stuff." She dropped her cigarette, crushing it under the heel of her boot and grabbed her coat and keys, shouting a farewell to James before all but running out of the lab.

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Well, there's the first chapter. I tried to just jump straight into the action instead of giving a full chapter of back story, a little something new for me, but I think it fit. Let me know what you think and fear now, I've got all the way through chapter 3 done, currently working on Chapter 4 but I figured I'd see how this was received before planning any more. **SO REVIEW! LET ME KNOW HOW I DID! **Thanks!


	2. Domestics

Hey guys, back again with chapter 2. Haven't had much of a response so far, hoping this chapter will help pick things up a bit for ya. Big shout out to the people who followed/faved/reviewed:

CaptainShy  
coeurdetenebre  
Alex-Kurotani

You guys rock! Anyway, hope you enjoy and on with the story!

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Domestics

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Riley sat on her couch, laptop open in front of her, cigarette stuck firmly between her lips as she types up James' notes on the pre-construction stage of his interdimensional portal. She laughed softly, blowing a puff of smoke at the screen, as if it was to blame for the shock she'd received. It had only been a few hours since everything happened and she still wasn't calm. She wasn't shaking or hyperventilating anymore, but she could already feel the migraine building and knew that if she spared the recent events any thought, it would send her over the edge into hysteria again. So she'd decided to work, it always calmed her right down. It had been one of the first things she did when she had all but run into her apartment. The first thing she'd done is grabbed a beer from the fridge, downing the foamy contents in just under a minute. It had been enough to give her a head rush and bring her down and shake her from her shocked state. Then came food, a smoke and work.

"Great, just great. Of all the damn jobs, I had to get the one with an actual mad scientist. Why the hell is it always me? I mean, it's not enough that every boyfriend I've had has been some stereotypical ass hat, but now I have to deal with the Island of Dr. Jackass too?" She sighed, snuffing out the end of her cigarette, pulling a face as she tasted the remnants of burnt filter on her lips and rubbed absently at the small tattoo at her wrist. It was of a triquetra, a pentacle seated in the middle, done in colors of fall. It was the only tattoo she'd ever gotten and it meant the world to her. It was a reminder of her younger days, when she'd been "that girl" around campus. She laughed to think of it now, remembering how her closet was full of nothing but tank tops, billowy peasent skirts and gauzy shawls. She'd been the stereotypical hippie wiccan chick, the one that always had a cause she was fighting for, even if it was only for a week. She'd gotten the tattoo with her boyfriend at the time, a stoner of the highest caliber and a loser to boot. He'd left her shortly there after, claiming she didn't have the right "energy". That had been what snapped her out of it all, bringing her firmly back to earth and the realization that she answered to a much older religion.

Since then she'd passed through many circles, always getting tired of all the ceremony, the pomp and circumstance that seemingly came hand in hand with any organized religious group and had settled for her small altar in her living room and the occasional prayer session with the only other true pagan she'd met since moving away from home. Margaret, usually called Maggie or Mags by her friends and coven mates, was all that Riley had once dreamed of being. She was "world wise" and "cool" by conventional standards. They'd met at a bar across town, just a random act of kindness on Riley's part. She'd been walking to her car, carrying a half dead, completely drunk and newly ex-boyfriend at the time when she'd seen a woman drop a small satchel. She knew the type from her years of carrying one just like it and had called out to the woman. Margaret had been her friend ever since.

Just as she was sinking into the memory, a knock on her door brought her out of her reverie and grounded her once again in the maddening reality of her day. Riley sighed, lighting another cigarette and standing, bringing the ashtray with her. She may be a smoker, but she didn't want to ruin her carpet. She peeked through the lens in the door, groaning as she saw James' face, a bit of brunette hair and two broad chests standing behind him.

"Riley, open up, I know you're in there and I need help with these guys." James sounded almost panicked, maybe they'd threatened him.

"Hell no James, I did not sign up for this. I'm sorry man, but you have more than enough space at the lab." She started to move away from the door when it rattled in its' frame, the thump of one of the mens' fists ringing through her apartment.

"You will let us in mortal or I will tear this door from its hinges." Loki all but shouted through the door, hammering on it once again.

"Alright, alright alright, just lay off." She shouted, undoing the three locks and opening the door for them to come in. She growled softly as she saw the skuffing and denting in the wood, left from one of the gauntlets Loki wore. "You fucked up my door dude." She fixed him with an irritated stare, waiting for an apology, but none came. She just sighed and slammed the door, redoing the locks and taking her cigarette and ashtray back to her couch and resuming her work.

"Riley, please. I need a place to keep these guys. The portal keeps popping open and I can't work with them constantly trying to fight or blast something." He motioned to the two men.

"So you would rather they blast things and try to fight in my small apartment, that has neighbors, and a strict sound policy, and a landlord that lives two floors below me. Great, really feeling the love there James." She took a long drag off her cigarette and closed her eyes, willing them all to be gone when she opened them again. They weren't.

"Rye, come on, they are royalty, they will behave themselves." He tried to laugh, but came off sounding weak and unsure.

"If that's true then you wouldn't need to get rid of them anyway. And what about smarty pants over there. Is she staying too? Or are you taking the only sane member of the party with you. Also, not too sure about where you guys come from but you might wanna be getting her to a hospital soon." She pointed to where the woman was slowly slumping over a table, eyes closed, face ashen. Thor was next to her in an instant, holding her to him, as though that would help her.

"There is nothing your mortal healers can do for her. She has a great weapon within her veins that is burning her from the inside out." He sounded so heart broken that Riley actually began to feel sorry for him.

"There is only one place were she may be saved. We were on our way there when this oaf captured us." Loki stabbed a finger at James, as if it alone could end him.

"Whoa whoa whoa, I didn't capture anyone, at least, not on purpose. It was just an accident. I've explained this already but they just won't listen." He turned to Riley, his shaken nerves clear in his eyes. "Please Riley, I can't fix this with them in the lab." He came over and sat next to her, absent-mindedly waving the smoke out of his face.

"Alright, fine, they can stay here, but only so long as it takes to fix this. You hear me? The moment that machine is up again, they are gone." She tried to sound stern but couldn't bring herself to add to his mountain of stress. She'd never seen him this bad before. She set her cigarette down in the ashtray and put a hand around his shoulders, ignoring the disgusted exclamation from Loki. James laid his head on her shoulder, letting out a sigh, visibly calming for the positive attention and then sat up, drawing in a breath.

"I'll be as quick as I can, but I estimate it'll take about a week to fix." He had the door unlocked and was out it before Riley could respond, leaving her with two confused gods and one sick woman.

"Well that just great. Awesome." She stood, walking slowly to the door and slamming it with a ringing kind of finality.

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It had been three days, just three days since James had dropped insanity at her door, and already she was ready for murder. Thor and Loki had not stopped bickering the entire time, it didn't matter when. They would argue about dinner, plans, how to enact those plans, what to do about Jane, what to do about their current predicament. They had even argued over who got the bed. Riley had put a stop to that one quickly enough, using a very heavy frying pan against Thor's head as an argument.

Jane, for her part, was quite agreeable, given the circumstances. She'd been nothing but understanding toward Riley and her habits, while the other two had done nothing but complain. Her smoking made Loki cough, though it really didn't, it smelled terrible. They didn't like her music. They didn't like when she would sit in the middle of the couch for a full day and work. They didn't like when she would watch TV. They didn't like what she cooked. She didn't cook enough of it. And that had all been in the first day. If it hadn't been for Jane playing mediator, one or both gods and Riley would already be dead.

The one thing that Loki seemed to actually enjoy about the place was her altar. It seemed to the only thing about her in general that he liked. He found it hilarious that his old Norse self was one of her patron gods and that there was a small idol shaped in his general likeness set off to one side of her bookshelf. Thor, for his part, seemed to try and keep his complaints to a minimum, only ever voicing concern over the things that, to him, really mattered. That seemed to consist almost solely of food stuffs, a place to lay his head, and the state of the woman he loved. All of these things were something that Riley could either fix, of lay at ease with the help of said woman.

She hadn't been doing so well, pale, weak and sickly, Thor feared she would die before the machine was repaired. But Riley knew a thing or two about redirecting energy and had been coaching Jane on doing the same. Riley had only ever used them as meditation exercises, but for Jane they seemed to actually be doing something. She would sit for hours sometimes, staring off into space on the corner of the couch, trying to direct the flow of the energy inside her away from her vital areas, trying to contain it in her limbs so it would do less damage. The results didn't really start to show until day three.

She woke up looking so much better. She seemed refreshed and happy, her skin was almost glowing with rejuvenated youth and her eyes had lost the feverish shine they'd had since they first met. She'd thanked Riley that morning before using her phone to call James, saying she was on her way down to the lab to help with the portal. She'd been dying to get a crack at it since she'd first learned about it, but today was the first day she was really feeling up to moving around. And that left Riley, stuck in a small apartment with two gods that couldn't stand each other and one that couldn't stand her. Today was going to be hard.

* * *

It had been four hours since Jane had left. Nothing had happened. It was a shock to Riley to be in a quiet space for the first time in three days. Thor sat in a corner, reading from an old Norse religious guide she'd bought on eBay and Loki was in the corner, studying her shrine for the millionth time. She plucked a cigarette from the box on the coffee table, sitting back into the plush cushion of the couch and lighting it, eyes fixed on the mischief god the entire time. Surely, if he was planning something, this would get a reaction. But it didn't. The smoke wafted toward the fan, pointed directly at the window which stayed cracked year round, and not a word was said. She didn't trust it.

"See something you like over there silver tongue?" She tried not to sound confrontational.

"Yes actually. These rune stones. Where did you get them?" He picked one up, missing her small wince. It had taken her a solid month to get those things used to her.

"My mom brought them back from a trip to Scotland. They were made in Norway. Why?" She leaned forward on the couch again, sure that this would spark his little plan.

"They are made of Asgardian stone. I know the kind. It comes from the mountain Odin's Palace is built on." He tossed the stone in the air, catching it and turning it over in his hand.

"Ok, and that's possible how exactly?" She raised an eyebrow, sure he was leading her on, trying to make a fool out of her for sport.

"The Convergence." Thor's voice broke softly into the conversation, a thoughtful look on his face.

"Ah, I see you've arrived at the same conclusion. It is the only explanation." Loki looked between his brother and Riley, a smug kind of smirk on his face. He knew she was the only one in the room who didn't understand what was going on.

"Okay, haha, stupid human doesn't understand. Wanna back track and let me in on the secret?" She fixed him with another glare, it seemed to be all she was doing recently.

"What my brother is referring to is a celestial event that happens once every five thousand years. It is called The Convergence. The nine realms,with Midgard at their center will align. It is the only explanation for our presence here." He explained as one would to a child, using a patronizing tone and lots of hand gestures, as if she would be completely lost without them.

"But that's in your univers. Our universe doesn't have nine realms. That stuff is all just fiction here." She pointed to the shelf behind Thor where two whole rows of comic books sat.

"Ah, but your friend created a tear in the fabric of both worlds. Just as we are now here, so too, are our realms, and our problems. Tell me, mortal, what do you know of the Dark Elves?" He grinned, watching the emotions play on her face.

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James was scurrying around the lab, bolting from one place to another as various computer monitors and sensors started beeping all at once. This was the scene that Jane walked into, setting off yet another alarm, although this on was more mundane. James silenced the door alarm with the flick of a switch and a frustrated growl, barely noting Jane's presence until she appeared in his path.

"Oh, hello. Sorry, not quite fixed yet, having a bit of trouble with some other equipment at the moment." He tried to push past her but she stopped him with a hand.

"James, please, relax. I think I may know a little about what 's going on." She sat him down at the table, all but forcing tea down this throat to try and calm him and launched into her explanation.

"Wait, wait wait wait, you mean...I did this?" He deflated as he said it, sagging in his chair, his face falling in sadness until he looked more like a child than a man.

"You didn't do anything wrong. It was an accident. And the good news is we can fix it...maybe." She said the last bit under her breath. "All we have to do is wait the Convergence out and hope nothing comes through that we can't handle." She set her arm comfortingly on his, urging him to stand. The machines had not stopped beeping through the entire conversation, but what they hadn't noticed is that it had sped up, almost like a proximity warning. It wasn't until they neared the console itself that they began to realize something was going on.

Lights had appeared on several of the monitors, flashing an angry red and moving slowly toward a large blue dot at the center of the monitor. Jane looked to James, watching the color fading from his face.

"What is that? Please tell me that isn't what I think it is." She walked over to the monitor, focusing on the dots, watching as they all seemed to spawn from one central point, a larger dot that she hadn't noticed before.

"That is my satellite detection system. I designed it for NASA before they starting planning the Curiosity voyage. It detects celestial body movement in the immediate vicinity of Earth." He tapped a couple keys on the monitor and a picture too the place of the radar like screen. They were mostly black and what little could be made out was very grainy. "See, there's the moon over there, and that's the Hubble Telescope, various satellites and space junk and...huh." He tapped the screen, enlarging a certain spot that appeared to be empty space. He stared for a second, getting closer and closer to the screen until a bright red flash made him jump and back away. "What the hell is that?" He pointed to the now visible, very real space ship that was cruising at a steady clip toward them.

"But...that looks like Malekith's ship. I saw a bit of it when he attacked. But that isn't right. Something as big as his ship shouldn't have been able to fit through any of the tears we've seen. I mean, maybe one of the smaller ships but not something that big...unless." She looked up at James, her face taking on a look of pure fear. "Unless both worlds are starting to merge."

* * *

"Okay, so let me get this straight. Because we punched a hole in your universe, now anything can come through so long as it isn't too big? That seems like a dumb rule. I mean, a tear isn't the same as a carefully constructed hole, it leaves jagged edges. Wouldn't it get bigger? That's how it always happens in movies and stuff." She felt stupid just saying it, but it felt right.

"Something would have to push through the breach from either side to widen it and I don't think ther is anyone stupid enough to do that." Loki laughed softly, like the very idea was worthy of scorn.

"Why? I mean, a window is still a window right?" She had a feeling that she sounded desperate despite her attempt to remain calm.

"To widen the gap between our worlds would cause them to crash into one another. Have you ever seen two galaxies collide? It is destruction on so grand a scale that there is no word for it. It would end everything in both worlds. As such, no one would dare try." Loki spoke of it with a kind of reverence, like he had seen two galaxies collide and thought it beautiful.

"How do you two know so much about this stuff? I mean, I know Asgard is advanced and all that, but why would you need to know anything about astrophysics? Don't you have scientists that take care of that for you?" She looked between the brothers, amazed at how similar they seemed now that they were no longer in contention.

"A king must be well versed in all things, even those he will never use." Thor stated, looking at her as if it were common knowledge.

"As I recall, you used to sneer when Odin said those same words." Loki laughed, fixing his brother with a mischievous glance that brought a smile to the blonde man's face.

"And as _I_ recall, you were always the one skipping out on long weapons training to go study with Mother." Both brothers seemed to deflate as this was said. Thor seemed full of a quiet kind of sadness, a grief that was deep, but pure. Loki was no so pure. He seemed to fill with a kind of angry sorrow that shook Riley to the core.

"Ok, so I'm guessing there is an issue with Mommy then?" She regretted it the moment it came out of her mouth.

"She is...no longer with us." Thor said, a tear sliding down his cheek as he stared into the carpet, like it would give him the comfort he sought. Loki remained silent, his eyes burning with a need for vengeance. Riley's phone chose that moment to ring, startling all three out of their own thoughts.

"Yello? Hey man, how's the...oh...yeah, okay...sure, I'll pull out the air mattress, bring the two from the lab. Yeah...yeah okay, later." She tapped the phone and then paused for a moment, taking a deep breath before winging the phone across the room where it struck a wall, denting the wall, and fell into a potted plant. Both brothers jumped, looking at her with a sudden caution, like they might have to restrain her any minute. Riley seemed ignorant of the change of mood in either man, standing, lighting a cigarette and moving into the kitchen, grabbing several bottles and putting them on the counter. All held a honey brown liquid, some a little darker, some a little lighter, the only real difference was on the details of the label. Some held the image of a pirate, leg up on a barrel, others were simple black affairs with lettering.

"Lady Riley, what is the matter?" Thor asked, setting her now cracked phone on the counter and eying the bottles with mild interest.

"My boss, genius that he is, has provided a big damn door for your world to fall through. Apparently some idiot alien ship pushed its way through the hole we made and is on its way to Earth. Which means not only are you guys here but now we're going to be dealing with a while ship full of what I'm assuming, cause it's been that kind of day, are very nasty alien types. My solution to this is get shit faced and ignore it until it goes away or I'm dead." She opened on of the pirate bottles and took a long pull from it.

"A ship? He said a ship came through?" Loki got very close to her, pinning her with an angry stare.

"Yes, a ship. A long, thin, black ship with red lights. Jane said it belongs to some guy called Maleky or something. I'm guessing that means something to you?" She returned his stare, refusing to be intimidated one more second.

"Male_kith_ is the odious creature that killed our mother." Thor said, already by the door.

"So you two are just gonna wait for him to land somewhere and then kill him and everyone else in that ship? No help or anything?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Do not doubt our power mortal. Do not forget that, to your people, we are gods." Loki looked back at her, full of anger and a strange kind of excitement. He smiled, something she had yet to see him do, and followed his brother out the door.

"Good Luck!" She shouted after them, grabbing as many of the bottles as she could carry as well as another pack of cigarettes and plopped down on the couch, arranging everything within arm's reach to minimize her chances of injuring herself and proceeded to consume as much alcohol and nicotine as possible.

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Well, there you have it, Chapter 2. Please R&R, let me know what you thought.


	3. Stories and Stones

Hey guys, back again with Chapter 3, still not a great amount of support for this but that just makes the reviews/faves/followers I did get all the more precious and awesome. So let me thank:

shalmarrose  
rose246  
KrazyKawaiiGG  
CaptainShy  
You guys are awesome and keep me writing. This is the last prequel like chapter, the action really gets started next chapter to hang in there!

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Stories and Stone

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The brothers arrived at the lab just the sun was setting. They walked into what appeared to be a disaster area. There were parts scattered everywhere, metal and plastic and plaster littered the floor and in the middle were a very distraught and messy James and Jane. James was muttering to himself about what had gone wrong this time and Jane seemed to be meditating. It took Thor tripping over an aluminum conduit cover to shake them both from their own thoughts.

"Thor? What are you doing here?" Jane stood up, walking carefully over to him.

"Riley told us about the ship. Is it truly Malekith?" He held her softly by the shoulders, unsure whether he wanted her to yes or no.

"It looked like it, from what we could see. Earth satellite imaging isn't quite as good as Heimdall I'm afraid." She smiled sheepishly, ignoring the small sound of disgust from Loki.

"Can you tell me where he will be landing?" He turned to James, pulling the man firmly out of his mind and into reality.

"You mean assuming he lands? He isn't flying like he plans to land anywhere. I don't know what kind of propulsion system he's using but he isn't slowing down at all and he's getting really close to the moon. I don't think he can even see us." James pulled up the latest scans his satellites had recorded and charted the path of the ship, showing where it would hit or, far less likely in James' mind, land.

"Very good. How long until he arrives?" Thor asked.

"At this rate, he'll be here by tomorrow afternoon." James said, sounding much calmer than he felt.

"We will be ready for him." Loki took note of the area the ship would land and was gone before Thor could say a word. He caught up to him outside.

"Where are you going? You have no weapons and no armor. How will you fight him?" He grabbed his brother's shoulder, drawing attention from passer-bys.

"I have my daggers and magic, I will be fine though it touches me to know that you will worry over me." Loki quipped, pulling his arm out of his brother's grip and starting back down the street. He heard his brother begin pursuit again and growled softly, phasing out of his sight so that the blonde idiot ran right past him. He smirked, setting off quickly to Riley's apartment. He would need those rune stones if he was going to pull this off properly.

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Riley was dancing around her apartment, scattering cigarette ash over the carpet as she jumped around to "The Phoenix" by Fall Out Boy. She didn't normally go in for this kind of music, too shallow and whiny, but something about the beat of the song made her love it. She was well on her way through the bottle of rum she'd opened when the boys left and was feeling pleasantly ignorant of everything but the music and her cigarette. Just as the song ended, switching to "Ramble On" by Led Zeppelin, she tripped over her overly long sweat pants and was unexpectedly caught by an invisible pair of arms. She was about to scream when the form of Loki shimmered into visibility.

"Wow, thanks." She gripped the counter, pulling herself out of his arms and turned, putting her cigarette down in the ashtray and stepping back.

"What are you listening to?" He asked in the same tone as someone smelling dog shit and she felt herself getting angry.

"Got something to say? It's Led Zeppelin and it is awesome." She took another swig of her rum and glared at him.

"I have no time for this. I am taking the Rune Stones from your altar." He held them up, sliding them into a small pouch.

"No! Give those back!" She lunged for them, missing by a few inches as he stepped away from her, leaving her to fall to the kitchen floor.

"I will return them when I have finished with my business. Fear not mortal, I will not lose your precious decoration." He sneered at her, flashing invisible again.

"You son of a bitch! Get back here!" She screamed, throwing a whiskey bottle at the spot she'd seen him facing. She heard a small hiss when the bottle shattered, but it was against a wall, not a head. She saw his face shimmer into visibility for a moment, a small line of red along one cheek and death in his eyes before he vanished, the door slamming shut behind him.

* * *

It was all Loki could do to not turn and end that pathetic mortal where she stood. How dare she! The stones were not even from her realm. She had no right to them save what she claimed in sentimentality. A small voice in his head said that neither did he, but he chose to ignore that and concentrate on his anger instead. The insolent woman had thrown a bottle at him. It would've done nothing, even if it had hit him, but the cut he'd received stung in the wind of the day and he found himself feeling almost betrayed that she had attacked him.

He caught himself in that train of thought and promptly changed the subject. He was not beginning to like her. She was an irritating mortal and he couldn't wait to be rid of her, even if she was an interesting conversational companion occasionally. Her food was sub par, compared to the banquets he'd attended in Asgard and her music was atrocious, though it did stir the blood in a primal sort of way. Her domicile was cramped and small, though if there were less people in it, it could be quite cozy.

He shook his head, pulling himself away from the consideration of the woman entirely. He may be developing a liking for her, but it didn't matter, soon they would be gone and Malekith would be dead, he had to plan how he would seize the throne. He had already ruled out by force, it hadn't worked very well the first time and now they all knew his tricks. He knew he would never been able to fool Odin, the All Father was too smart for that. But what about Thor?

He felt his face split into a grin as he picked up his pace. His gullible brother would be the perfect target. The All Father knew him too well for him to take Thor's place, but how much did Thor really know of his precious father? It would have to be done delicately. The whole of Asgard would erupt in anger if the King suddenly disappeared, but, after a fierce battle or after more grievous news, like the death of an ill gotten heir, would be perfect. They would all assume that he would be in chambers until the grief ran its course. And in that time Loki would capture and secret him away, taking his place as the reluctant and sad leader. It was perfect.

* * *

Thor turned to Jane, concerned at the time lapse since his brother had left. It had been almost an hour and there had been no sign of Loki. He was beginning to think that he'd run off, choosing to live as an outsider in the universe instead of go back in his brother's custody. He was just gathering himself to begin a search when the door to the lab opened, revealing an angry, bleeding Loki.

"Brother, why are you bleeding?" Thor stood away from the console, obviously expecting an army to charge through the door after Loki.

"That blasted mortal threw a bottle at me." Loki drew a thumb across his cheek, wiping the blood from it and glaring at James as though this were his fault.

"Riley did? Why?" James turned from his monitor, concentration being replaced by panic.

"I took the stones from her altar and she shouted at me and threw the bottle. Are all mortal women this irrational?" He asked, his eyes fixed on Jane, glittering with mischief.

"Oooh, you touched her altar? Man, you are brave. She's put guys in the hospital for messing with that thing." James laughed softly.

"For an altar? That seems a little much for something you can rebuild in like, ten minutes." Jane said, looking incredulously at James.

"Yeah well all the stuff on it came from her mom or grandmother. She didn't used to be so protective of it, but since the accident, she's been really zealous about no one messing with it. She says that their energy is the only thing she has of them anymore." He explained quickly, like he wanted to get it out before anyone could actually hear.

"Accident? They died?" Jane's face went from amused to shocked to saddened faster than Loki had ever seen.

"Yeah, there was some kinda pile up on the interstate a couple years ago, something about a tanker flipping across all four lanes and then they just didn't come home. The cops showed up a few hours later and gave her the news, she didn't take it well. Sometimes I think she still isn't coping." He sighed, going back to his monitor and figures. Jane bit her lip, looking at Loki.

"You have to give them back. It's all she's got left." She gave him a soulful look, something he was sure worked on most men.

"Tell me, Jane, what remembrance do I have of my mother? Or Thor of his? It is a happy thing to have, but no necessary. She does not need it as I do." He tucked the pouch in a pocket, turning. "Thor, if we are to reach the ship in time, we must go now." He stood by the door, motioning with a hand for them to leave.

"Yes. Jane, please stay with James and Riley. They will make sure you are safe until we can remove the Aether from you safely. Do not follow me." He leaned down and kissed her softly before turning and walking out of the lab with his brother.

"Alright, well there isn't anything else we can do here today, all this stuff needs at least a day to set up. Let's go check on Riley, I'm sure she's gonna want to get drunk, if she hasn't already." James grabbed his stuff from the table, the only clean surface in the room, and waited for Jane to leave the room so he could shut off the lights.

* * *

Thor had just taken off. It had taken some doing, convincing him that his help wasn't needed, but finally Loki was alone. He scanned the area, looking for any of the colorful pockets that would allow him to travel between realms, grinning softly when he caught sight of one in the side of a building. It was just large enough for him to slip through and, if the scenery on the other side was anything to go off of, was near the spot where the ship would land. It made him smile to know that some things in life never changed. Whoever created this universe was just as lazy as the one who'd made his. There were little holes all over the place, made easily accessible by the humans' need to build. He walked to the building, ignoring the horns going off on either side of him as he crossed the road and leaned against the wall, taking a breath as he felt his body begin to fall into the space between worlds. He straightened up in the riot of light and color that is the area on nothing that packs the space around worlds and crossed the short gap to the other side, stepping out in a cold place.

It was snowy here, but bright, so close to what Jotunnheim could have been if their leader had but tried a little harder. He smiled, bending and feeling the snow between his fingertips. It was cold and wet, and the sensation seemed to remind his body what he truly was, shifting his skin to that of a jotunn male, all pale blue and carvings. He laughed as the sensation of coldness descended through his whole body, inuring him to it from any outside source. It was still a foreign sensation, something he had never had the opportunity to get used to due to the stigma set on his kind by his supposed father. He felt a sneer pull at his lips and pushed the thoughts away, hearing the telltale sound of _Mjölnir_ coming up behind him.

"Here already brother? I am surprised." He turned, the blue fading from his skin.

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James knocked on the door softly, half afraid of what would be waiting for him on the other side, but was greeted with the tear stained face of a very drunk Riley. She was mumbling something under her breath about "son of a bitch gods" and snake venom, but none of it was too worrying for him. He'd seen her when she was in the grips of true misery and so long as she was moving around and talking, he knew she would be alright. Jane on the other hand rushed into the room, grabbing her up in a hug and directing her to the now booze free couch. She motioned with her free hand for him to get rid of the remaining bottles and sat with Riley on the couch.

"Oh sweetie, don't worry, he'll bring them back." She shushed her softly, rubbing her arms as the woman reached a shaky hand out to her pack of cigarettes.

"If he doesn't, I'm gonna kill him." Riley sounded dead serious, a tone that chilled Jane's blood and made her look to James, who was busying himself in the kitchen. It didn't take long to figure out what he was doing as he appeared with three cups of coffee and a plate of toast, eggs and bacon.

"Alright lush, time to wake up." He snagged the laptop off her lap, setting the plate in front of her and shoving the table so close that it brushed her knees when she leaned forward.

"Not hungry." She mumbled, turning her face away from the food.

"Bull shit, I know you, you only get this bad, this quick, when you haven't had anything to eat. Now scarf or wear it." He fixed her with a pointed glare and she crumbled, sticking a tongue out at him as she started shoveling food into her mouth. "Coffee too, I can't have my best candidate too hung over to work now can I?" He smiled as she grinned, flipping him off and trying to hide her smile.

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So, there you have it. Next chapter is when things really get rolling so please R&R and stay tunes!


	4. Strange Dreams and Strange Connections

Hey, back again with the next chapter. This one took me a while to get straight in my head so sorry for the delay. Loki has not been cooperating with me much and work had been crazy. I hope to get some work on Chapter 5 done tomorrow and have it up by the end of the week, but as usual I make no promises lol. Only had two notices for this one and no criticism, kinda confusing on that front. But on to the thanks:

CaptainShy  
Nessa191

You two rock. I would really like some reviews for this chapter, even if they are bad ones. I just want to know what you guys think and see if this is getting a positive or negative reaction, and if it is negative, what I can do to fix it. Things really pick up in this chapter so I hope you enjoy.

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Strange Dreams and Strange Connections

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The day had passed relatively slowly for the two brothers, the night was no less dull. Loki had long since tired of pestering his brother, tormenting him with all manner of quips and barbs about friends and family and had settled for planning in silence. Thor, for his part, was miles away in his own thoughts, reliving all the happy memories he had of his mother. Many of them featured Loki in some form or another, be it a game they all used to play together, or having stories read to them before bed. It was enough to warm his heart toward his brother, rekindle some of the lost affection he had thought dead.

"Loki, do you remember the stories mother used to tell us?" He turned to his brother, a small smile on his face.

"Of course I do." Loki responded, refusing to turn to face the blonde god.

"Come now, can we not simply converse?" He tried to be lighthearted, ignoring the continued iciness from his adopted sibling.

"Thor, what point is there in our conversing. We know what must be done and have agreed upon a plan of action. There is nothing to do at this point but wait. If you wish to pass the time, might I suggest some quiet reflection?" His tone was final and he capped it off by moving further away and laying down, using his cloak as a pillow as his skin deepened from pale white to blue. Thor knew better than to push his brother further, he would come around when he was ready. Besides, he had a point, they were both tired from the day and could do with a rest. He sighed as he pulled out the spare cloak he'd thought to bring and folded it under his head, ignoring the cold around him as sleep claimed him almost instantly.

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They had finally managed to calm Riley enough to get a coherent story out of her, though it had taken every ounce of James' patience. Between the liquor still working its way out of her system and her stubborn refusal to release her anger, it was almost nightfall before she could recount the story without dissolving into either tears of a fit of anger. Turns out that she was simply enjoying herself, dancing around in her sweats and a tank when Loki had come in, invisible according to her and stolen her mother's rune stones out from under her. She kept grumbling about the energy, how it would be contaminated, but James had never understood any of her Pagan stuff. Jane seemed to have a better grasp on it and was working to console her, after she'd repeated the story for the fifth time.

"Rye, focus hun, what exactly did he say he needed them for." James asked, sighing in exasperation.

"How the hell should I know, it's not like he sat here and monologued his whole damn plan to me or anything. He just came in, snatched them, kept me from smashing my face on the floor and then.." She made a sound like wind whooshing away and flipped the front door off. Jane giggled at this, quickly silenced by two sets of angry eyes.

"Sorry, I'm just not used to people flipping off inanimate objects. I take it this is normal for you guys?" She asked, looking between the two. It was weird how they looked almost related when they did that.

"Yes, I like to express myself. Look, James, I don't know anything else alright? I'm sober and exhausted and dirty and in need of a shower. The air bed is in the closet, Jane can take the bed, I'll snag the couch. Let's just all sleep this off like a bad dream and we'll see where we are in the morning alright?" She stood up from the couch, shrugging Jane's arms away and grabbing the ashtray, dumping it in the trashcan as she walked down the hall. She grabbed another pack of cigarettes, a water proof lighter and carried them, along with the ash tray into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

"Well, she seems better." James said, taking a deep breath and wincing as loud rock music began to boom out from around the bathroom door, mingling with the sound of the shower turning on. "At least she's not breaking things anymore." He amended, walking into the kitchen to start cleaning up.

"Is this something that happens often?" Jane asked, walking after him, towel in hand.

"Only when she's had a bad break up, or a fight with her brother, or her dad is in town...so yeah, pretty regular." He laughed, wetting a rag under the faucet and beginning to wipe down the counters. Jane followed along behind him, drying and straightening so that the whole kitchen, minus one area with dirty dishes piled in it, was spotless and organized. That was how Riley found it when she came out, once more in sweats and a tank top, hair plaited in a braid down her back.

"Thanks guys, sorry about earlier. I'm better now, promise. So, who's up for a movie and some ice cream?" She held up a copy of "Paul" and watched James break into a grin. Jane just seemed confused and Riley was struck for the first time by the differences in their worlds. "You have no idea what this movie is do you?" She asked, handing the case to Jane.

"Not a clue. Looks good though. Is it funny?" She asked, handing it back and going to the living-room. She settled on the floor in front of the coffee table and smiled, waiting for the other two to get comfortable.

"Has anyone ever told you that you are incredibly easy to get along with? I mean, you are stupid amounts of sweet." Riley said, popping the disc in the player and turning on the TV.

"Yeah well, my parents taught me to be polite and you guys are fun." She smiled back at the woman on the couch, grinning when Riley shoved her feet under James, unseating him and motioning for Jane to join her instead.

"Ladies get the couch. You now that." She grinned, hitting play before James could respond.

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Loki couldn't sleep. It was something he had plenty of experience with. Even before all the betrayal and pain, he'd often be kept awake by ideas or theories he couldn't reconcile in his mind, driven from his bed to the vast libraries of the palace, pulled by the knowledge contained in the covers of those books. But his restlessness this night was not caused by his own mind but another. The thoughts were warm, warmer than any mind he'd ever touched and full of energy. It was like touching a stone on the beach at midday, full of potential and heat. It settled in his mind like a pebble in a shoe, pulling his mind to see its presence.

Thor lay facing away from him, soft snores accompanying the rise and fall of his shoulders. Trust the oaf to be able to sleep through anything. It was something Loki had always envied in his brother. He was capable of relaxing almost on command, silencing his mind to peacefulness on a whim. Even now, in the face of abandonment in a new world, he was like a babe asleep in its mother's arms, placid and without a care, having pleasant dreams as well no doubt. He sneered, turning his envy to scorn. Truly, Thor was without thought. He rolled to his back, feeling the snow press in on his cold skin. It wasn't until he rolled on his belt pouch that he realized the source of his original discomfort. There was something incredibly hot in the small sack. It felt like someone had lined the whole bag with boiling water.

He drew the string open, looking inside to see the rune stones he'd taken from Riley, glowing white hot and brilliant as star light. He tried to examine them, reaching a hand into the pouch with the intent of pulling one of the stones out. But the stones had other plans. No sooner had he touched one but it burned his finger as if he'd touched a raw flame. He drew his hand out of the bag with a soft hiss, glaring down at it as though it had meant to do that. It was then he realized that the bag was emitting not only heat, but light as well. It was like a miniature sun was trapped in the bag, shining out in the darkness.

"Interesting" He grinned, grabbing a handful of snow and dropping it down into the bag on top of the runes, following it quickly with his now pale blue fingers, grabbing the first stone he could while they were still relatively cooled from the snow. Once separated from its fellows, the stone dimmed, resembling the light of a stubby candle as opposed to the star light brightness still inside the satin lined velvet and the heat was nowhere near what it had been. It was still warm, but only in so far as a stone would be after having been pressed against a body for several hours. His grin widened, beginning to understand what was happening to the seemingly ordinary stones.

He'd mentioned before that they were of Asgard, a rare mineral that must've fallen to Midgard during the last convergence, but that was not all they were. The element the stones were comprised of was conductive. It had the ability, if left in the same person's care long enough, to transmit that person's thoughts and emotions, directly through the stone. It had been used as a primitive means of tracking and monitoring a spouse or child. Rings were made of the stone and exchanged on the day of marriage or when a child came of age and never removed, thus allowing the couple or parent to know at any point if the child or spouse was well. It had long since become obsolete on his world, being replaced by much more sophisticated methods like direct psychic links. But it was possible that these stones, having been kept in Riley's presence so long, were reacting to her mind.

He felt a pang of worry spark the corner of his mind. If they were so hot and bright, she must either be in great danger, or having very bad dreams. He caught his mind wandering toward her, the stone in his hand aiding him in making a link with her, stopping short of connecting. It was foolish of him to be letting his consciousness venture away from his body, especially for one little mortal. But still the interest had been sparked. He would inquire about this further when he saw her again. For now, he sighed and lay back in the snow, tying the bag tight again but keeping one stone in his hand, gripped tight as he felt sleep finally begin to claim him.

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Riley thrashed on the couch, the blanket tangling around her feet as her arms reached toward the air. Her mind was far away, in the past, caught in the recollection of someone else's mind. It had been two years since the accident. Two years since she was woken up by a dream of smoke and fire and crushing pressure to the phone call from her father. Two years since she'd had to bury the two most important women in her life. But it would seem that two years was not enough time to lessen the memory of them. Even now, when she was surrounded by the energy of so many different people, the memory of her mother's mind still thrived in her dreams, giving her visions of a giant eighteen wheeler, already ablaze, turning end over end toward her. A pile of cars growing steadily larger, lit by the light of the still burning wreck of the truck off to her right. Pain, lancing and oppressive, holding tight to her chest and keeping her pinned. And her grandmother, seated beside her, clinging to the steering wheel as she tried to pull the shrapnel from her side. Even then, under so much pain and fear, she was shushing her daughter, keeping her calm, keeping her focused on anything but the large piece of metal protruding from her chest.

And then she was awake, sitting up and panting, hand flying to her chest, just where the metal had pierced her mother's heart, pinning her to the seat and sealing her fate. She was shaking, her whole body feeling weak and fragile, like a porcelain doll that had been repaired one too many times. She felt like she would simply fall apart if she was shaken again. She looked around, suddenly not wanting to be alone, desperately wishing the others were awake as tears pricked at her eyes. She hugged her knees to her chest, rocking slowly back against the arm of the couch as she began to sob quietly into the blanket. And that was how sleep claimed her, wrapped in grief and remembered fear.

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Across the world, Loki's eyes flew open, his mind struggling to reconnect with his body, reminding himself who he was and where he was, pushing down memories of fire and stabbing pain that didn't belong to him. He hissed as his mind rose to full wakefulness, dropping the stone that had slowly been branding the rune on its surface into his palm. He stuck his hand into a snow bank, groaning softly as it both heightened and alleviated the burning skin. He would have a scar, at least until he could return to Asgard and see a proper healer. But what had those memories been about? He'd never known anyone who died like that and even if he had, they were never bonded. He should not have had access to memories that were not his own.

He looked down at the rune, grimacing softly as he saw the small hole it had melted in the snow where it had fallen. It still steamed slightly, still powered with remembered heat and tension. He tossed some snow over it, letting it sit and cool for a moment before reaching down and grabbing it, keeping it encased in the snowball around it, listening to the hiss of it slowly melting the cold flakes. Why did it react more when he touched it? He had no connection to the mortal, anymore than anyone would have after having spent a night or two in her home. There is no reason her stones should be giving him these memories and feelings.

He started as something cold and wet fell on his hand, a drop of water. But it wasn't water, it was a tear. A single tear shed from his own eye, though he had nothing to shed a tear for. It began to chill and freeze on his skin, turning it to its natural pale blue. What was the meaning of it all? He sighed, wiping the moisture from his hands and putting the rune back into the pouch with the others. He was about to face a terrible enemy and could not afford to have his sleep interrupted again.

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Well, there ya go, Chapter 4. Please please PLEASE review so I know what you think and can fix anything that needs fixing! Thanks in advance for feedback and such and I'll see you guys in Chapter 5!


	5. Life and Death

As promised, chapter 5. This is a long one folks so strap in. I decided to deviate from my format of small chapters and singular plot points for something bigger and more intricate so let me know what you think. This was a hard one to write, but it was mostly inspired by "Eyes of the Devil" by Seether, if that explains anything lol. Now on to the thanks:

xLyraCharlottex  
Shar82204  
CaptainShy  
ALotObsessed

You guys rock, as always. Still just the one review, hope this chapter will change that. Let me know what you think alright?

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Life and Death

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The day dawned, bright and cold. Loki woke first, waking his brother with a shower of freshly fallen snow over his unprotected face. For a moment, it was like they had never been apart, like the last several years worth of betrayal and pain had never happened. He was back at his brother's side, preparing for a battle with some small civilization that resented Odin's rule. But as the sun rose, Thor stood, no smile present, his eyes distant as he saw his brother's smirking face and the truth of the situation settled once again on Loki's already heavy shoulders. The pain that lanced through him was quickly swallowed into his own burning resentment and grief. He was not here for his brother, he was here for vengeance. He was here to take the life of the creature who had slain the only member of his adopted family that had still loved him.

He stood, shaking the snow from his cloak and armor as he checked his weapons, still at his hips, and the pouch containing the stones he stolen from Riley. They had returned to their normal temperature. He took a moment to wonder at the happenings of the night before, going so far as the reach into the pouch to feel the stones. They no longer vibrated with the energy he had sensed the night before and they were cold, lifeless once more. He thought of the human woman, crying and cursing him, the heat of the stones so reminiscent of her temper that it struck him almost physically. She truly was connected to them, though why that was or why it merited his attention he had yet to guess. Thor shook him from his musings, calling his attention to the air, pointing out the slight shimmer it had taken on.

"The convergence has begun, this is but one of the many...symptoms, we will see. Watch." He took a handful of snow, forming it into a ball as he drew even with his brother. He tossed the ball lightly through the shimmering distortion, laughing as it exited just behind them, exploding into powder against the back of his brother's skull.

"I have no time for your games Loki. What does this mean?" He turned, facing his grinning brother, brushing the snow from his hair.

"Simply put, the walls of the worlds are thinning. As for time, it would seem we have plenty. We know from your mortal's calculations that this is where the Dark Elf will appear and he has yet to arrive, so it would seem that we are left with little to do but wait. Wouldn't you agree?" He hefted another handful of snow, forming another ball and chucking it a little harder into the shimmer, watching as his brother flinched, though no projectile ever came. He made a small noise of interest and tested it again, watching as the snow ball disappeared, reappearing as half melted and fragile. "Still in flux it would seem. Malekith will wait until the convergence is at its height before he makes his attempt. He can't risk the Aether going off course or it will pull him with it. But it seems odd that he will come here openly without first attaining it, don't you think?" He looked over to his brother, seeing if the big lug had followed his train of thought.

"What do you mean? Speak plainly, I am in no mood for your riddles." Thor turned to him, a blankly angry look on his face. Loki sighed, turning to face Thor fully and taking a deep breath, preparing himself for a lengthy explanation.

"I mean, we were on our way to him, if you will recall. He was menacing Asgard to get to the mortal woman Jane, correct? He would not dare move against a full realm until he attained that power. Jane is not here, she is back with the mortals on the other side of the world. It would be foolish to expect his first move to be an overt landing. It would put us all on alert and give us time to hide the woman before he could get to her. I believe that this is a ruse, taking us out of the fight before it has even begun so that he may infiltrate the city where we landed and obtain the Aether before we even know he is here." Loki kept his tone calm, realizing even as he said it that it had the ring of absolute truth. His mind had been buzzing ever since they'd set out for this place. He hadn't known at the time just what was causing his nerves to be so on edge, but now it was clear. He had been fooled, just like the mortals, into thinking that the elf would be disoriented after coming through the portal. It had made sense at first, they had been so why wouldn't he? But he had spent the majority of his life traveling through realms and living in the dark space at the edge of the Universe. It had been foolishness to think that he would be so easily confused.

"We must return, immediately." Thor began to swing Mjolnir in quick circles, the leather strap creaking rapidly as wind began to kick up snow around him.

"See you there brother," Loki said, fading through the small portal he'd found. He was back in the city and on his way to Riley's apartment before his brother even hit the coast. He laughed, sometimes it was nice to be the smarter of the two, even if it did lead to an unfair prejudice.

* * *

Riley was the first one awake. Her eyes itched with the remnants of tears and her head still ached slightly. Guess even a midday bender would leave a hangover. Her mind took a moment to catch up to the present, running through the happenings of the night before, including the nightmarish remembrance of her mother's death. Why had she relived it so vividly? Why had the memories risen up in such clarity for her? Her eyes wandered over to the empty spot on her altar, the space usually occupied by her rune stones and she had a fleeting image of Loki, halfway around the world, sitting bolt upright. Had he seen them too?

She shook her head, ridding herself of the questions. Thinking was for after breakfast and coffee. But how to get to the kitchen? She looked around, seeing chip bags and snack wrappers littering the floor. Last night had been a hell of a time. They'd ended up staying in the living room, Jane and Riley both taking up the couch and James on the queen sized air mattress on the floor. At some point in the night, Jane had decided to join James, sleeping in the opposite direction on the bed so that her feet were pressed against his chest, a throw pillow stuck between her shoulder and her head, the small afghan she'd been snuggling under wrapped tightly around her. It was like something out of a high school sleep over and it brought on a small fit of laughter as Riley struggled to get up without waking the other two.

They didn't wake up for another half hour. It was the smell of breakfast that first brought them to consciousness, bacon popped and sizzled with fried potatoes cooled on the counter. A plate of sausage was already sitting on the breakfast bar and the coffee pot was happily percolating, adding its own delicious aroma to the bouquet that drew the two sleepy people to the table.

"Good morning." Riley turned, sliding the last of the bacon and scrambled eggs onto two separate dishes. She began to set the dishes on the table, making sure everything was within reach of everyone and going to get the milk, orange juice and fresh coffee for everyone. It was nice, she thought, playing host. She hadn't done it in a while, she hadn't had anyone over in a while. She looked over at the two, rubbing sleep from their eyes and muttering tiredly to one another, their brains still struggling to rid themselves of the foggy after effects of a good night's sleep. She smiled, settling herself into her own seat and filling her plate with eggs, bacon, sausage and fried potatoes and filling her mug with coffee that she then began to "doctor". It was her word for all the steps she went through to make it not taste like coffee anymore. James threw out his usual snarky comment about wanting some coffee with her creamer but she just ignored him and let the warmth of the situation seep into her, chasing away the horror of the night before and the sting of sorrow it had brought up with it. Everything was perfect, for the moment, simple and perfect and nice, and then the door burst open and everything went to hell.

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Loki was nearing the apartment when they attacked him. Dark Elves, coming from the alleys on either side of the street, charging forward with energy weapons firing directly into his path. No shots seemed to be aimed at him, just where he had been heading. He turned, intent on finding another way to the mortal's apartment building, only to find more combatants coming from the alleys behind him. Once they had filled the space on either side of him, covering the road and adjacent side streets, they stopped firing and just stood, blank face masks staring at him, weapons trained on him, resolute.

Thor was facing a similar predicament, only about a thousand feet up. He had been surrounded mid flight by four of the small craft that had made the attack on the palace. Like the ground forces, they didn't seem intent on attacking him directly, merely stopping him from moving any further toward the apartment. They had forced him to land on a high rise not too far off his flight path, sitting at each corner of the building like sentinels, waiting for him to make a move. He set his hammer onto the roofing gravel gently, hands held out to his sides, face grim. He knew the purpose behind this obstruction and his mind was working furiously to find a way around it. He had to reach Jane before Malekith got to her, or there may not be anything left to save.

Loki, for his part, had been thinking for moment one. He knew that if he took a step either forward or back, he would earn a quick and painful death. But these creatures didn't seem to know his full power. Perhaps they hadn't thought it prudent to learn just what tricks he had up his sleeve. He grinned, turning in a slow circle, careful to keep his position neutral, surveying every soldier and their position, measuring the space left between them. It would be easy enough to simply vanish and slip between two of them, continue on his way, but he had no way of knowing if that would work. They could start firing randomly in the hopes of hitting him. They could have a contingency for that particular trick. But would they be able to control themselves against more than one of him? He grinned, readying himself to strike.

Thor was pacing around the roof, glaring at the ships as though that would make them move. He could feel the rage building in him. First these monsters take his mother from him, make him abandon his home and potentially lose the love of the only parent he had left, and then they come to the one place he still feels safe and proceed to menace the woman he loves. Truly, they were begging for a quick and ugly death. He knew he would not be able to control himself for much longer. His temper was legendary, and not without reason. A god he may be, but even gods have a limit, and these creatures were pushing him to the breaking point.

Both brothers acted at once, though still miles apart. Loki faded from their vision, flattening himself against a wall as the panic fire started. That alone took out several soldiers. He laughed as the mortal woman's term for this floated through his mind, friendly fire appeared to be anything but. He took a moment to gather himself, manifesting several copies of himself at strategic points, waiting to make first one appear and then the other. The Dark Elves, disoriented as they were by the strange surroundings and unusual battle plan, began to fire on their fellows, trying to hit the quickly fading illusions of his own smiling face. It was almost pathetic how easy it was. He waited until a fair number of them lay dead on the ground before dismissing the illusions, maintaining his own invisibility and set off at a sprint for Riley's apartment. He had a sick feeling in his stomach that he would already be too late, something was screaming at the edge of his mind and the rune stones at his side had begun to heat again, almost burning through the fabric of the pouch.

Thor was not so subtle with his attack. It was a spectacle that would be reported for several days on the local news as both a freak weather occurrence and an experiment gone wrong, though neither will ever be fully explained. He had no illusions, no tricks up his sleeve to throw at the overwhelming fire power now trained on him. All he had was his own strength and power. He stopped his pacing, kneeling slowly to the graveled roof, his hands at his sides, one finger slowly curling around Mjolnir's leather strap and drawing it closer to him. If the elves noticed, they didn't seem to care as no shots bombarded him. It wasn't until the hammer started to slowly revolve that the weaponry came to life, actively aiming at him instead of just vaguely pointing. By the time they realized something as amiss, it was too late. Lightning poured down from the sky, raining onto the rooftop, throwing sparks off anything metal or wired and sending shocks through several buildings around the high rise. It was enough to knock out power in all four ships, blowing holes in the sides and venting shafts of the interior. Fire leapt from those holes, fanned and fed by the air rushing into the previously sealed craft. They fell with a strange kind of grace, the shape of the ships slowly causing them to turn in the air until the bow was facing the street. It was, luckily, free of pedestrians. The ships crashed with muted explosions, throwing more fire and sparks into the road. Thor didn't bother to watch, not caring if there were survivors. He was already flying as fast as he could to the small apartment building, his stomach twisting in anxiety.

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Riley was the first to her feet, running for the kitchen, hand mere inches from the handle of a knife, when the energy blast hit her in the side. It didn't sting or burn, not like she would've expected from a bolt of pure light energy, it just tore through her, causing every pain receptor she had to fire at once, dropping her instantly to the floor, though the only sign she had been wounded was a small burn mark on her side. Jane was a little more clever, melting to the floor and dodging under a table as the room was sprayed with suppressing fire. James dropped quickly, a small burn at his temple, his eyes open wide and staring. His face was passive, relaxed, still in the sleepy expression of happiness it had been a moment before. It was the expression he would wear to the grave. Jane held back a sob, putting a hand to her mouth to stifle her breathing and praying that this was just an advance party. The sound of slow laughter and heavy boot falls on the plush carpet let her know just how wrong she was. Malekith had come for her himself.

"Come out Mortal, I can sense you are here." His voice was dark and low, full of malice and anger. It was like listening to concentrated hatred. It sent chills down her spine and she felt a strange urge to obey, her body even beginning to shift before she brought her limbs back under control. It would seem that he could command the Aether even if it was in another host. "No? Well perhaps another death on your hands will convince you. How many more will have to sacrifice themselves before you stop hiding and face your fate?" His footsteps traveled across the living room, moving to the hallway opening to the kitchen. He said something in his native tongue, a faint groan accompanying the following rustle of movement. It was Riley. She was still alive. But not for long if Jane remained hidden.

* * *

Riley was blissfully unaware of anything that was happening in her apartment. She was somewhere else, floating in a sea of blue green energy, surrounded by it on all sides. It seemed to glow faintly, happily, tossing her occasionally on a wave or surge before settling again. It formed a kind of pattern or rhythm, jouncing her around in time to some kind of movement or action that she couldn't see. It was almost like it was alive and trying to keep her safe from the storm raging further in. She could just barely see it, a dark mass at the edge of her vision. It was like a massive cyclone at sea, it threw a shadow that was so dark it was almost tangible, even this far away and it made her wish she could anchor herself in the pleasant shallows. Already she could feel the change in the water, the pull of the tide. She was moving inexorably toward it, despite the waves and her own feeble movements.

Soon, the shadow was upon her, drowning her in a cold black rain, pushing her under the surface of the emerald green tide, into a darker water. This too was green, thick and heavy like the needles of a pine tree, shocked through with a pale blue, so frigid it burned when it touched her. She tried to resurface, make her way out of this painful torrent, but could neither find the surface nor see enough to guess if she was even going in the right direction. She fought for breath, her lungs screaming at her to open her mouth and take in anything at all to relieve the pain, but she fought it down, her vision slowly going black, shocks of frigid bright blue closing around her limbs and holding her still, burning her limbs as her consciousness slipped away from her.

She opened her eyes a moment later, all sensation gone from her body save for a sense of weightlessness and she saw herself, floating in the midst of that murky hell, eyes closed, body completely relaxed, hair fanned around her in a slowly waving mass. It was beautiful, in a horrific kind of way. She saw the burning tendrils holding her, the kind beneath them slowly blackening. But this vision didn't last long. She was being pulled away from herself, into a kind of black light. It gave off a luminescence, but no warmth, and while it lit the area around it, it seemed to also lengthen the shadows. It was a place Riley did not want to go, but she knew she had no choice. She tried to close her eyes as she passed through the blackness, not wanting to see what was on the other side, but all she could do was whimper as it pressed into her. She could feel it all over, pressing against her skin as if it could go right through her clothes. She could feel it on her eyes, pressing against the skin, invading the pupils, slowly sliding into her mind, and then she was through.

The sight below her was beautiful. It was Asgard, presented from above in all of its gilded glory. The image didn't last long, fading in, pulling her into the buildings, below the ground, showing her flashes of images. She saw a small boy in a massive library, reading at a table that seemed too large to be real. She saw a young man, smiling at the base of a throne, accepting a horned helm from the man that sat upon it. She saw a bright blue cube like weapon, standing on a pedestal, just out of reach of a small hand. Her vision flashed again, changing to a planet made of ice and snow, the frigid cold should've frozen her to the bone, but it didn't. She saw giants, blue and covered in runic scars, their skin imbedded with bits of jade. Then there was nothing but cold blackness once again, her heart swelled with a sorrow and anger so deep and profound that she had to fight to breathe. It was enough to draw tears from her eyes. She felt like she was standing at the mouth of a gaping maw, full of despair, a bottomless pit of suffering that was pulling her down.

The vision faded, ripping away from her with a tangible pain. She found herself coming back to her own body, freed of both the torrent of confusing currents and the bright blue tendrils. She struggled to the surface, fighting her way out of the black storm, breaking the edge with an audible scream. The shallows welcomed her once more, their gentle waves carrying her away from the hell she'd fallen into and soothing her chilled skin with their soft warmth. She felt the pain in her extremities easing, being washed away with every lap of the water around her. She didn't even realize she was moving until she was deposited on a beach, the water receding from her with a kind of reluctance that seemed almost romantic in its caress. It was on this beach that she finally allowed herself to collapse. Her head pillowed on a familiar lap, a smile shining in a familiar face, wrinkled with age but no less youthful in expression. Another set of hands began tending her frost burned skin. The hands moved with a practiced ease, like they had tended her millions of times before. A face leaned into her blurring vision and she knew it well. She felt tears rise, obscuring the faces of the two women until they were unrecognizable. She allowed herself to cry out her anger and fury into the lap of her grandmother, letting go of her fear and sadness as her mother soothed the pain in her wrists and ankles. It was in this state that she let herself drift off, her mind returning to her body, sinking into the sore flesh she had accidentally fled. As she came to, she felt herself being moved. She remembered the attack, falling onto the hard kitchen tile. She felt carpet under her now as hands set her none too gently onto the floor. She felt a hand beside her, calloused and well used. It was James, but he wasn't moving. She reached over to him, trying to grasp his fingers to let him know she was safe, but got no response. His skin was cool to the touch, and getting colder. He didn't move, not even when she pinched his skin between her nails.

She felt her blood run cold, the rising sorrow getting swept quickly away by a deep and burning anger. She felt power, not her own, course through her at the thought of his death. These monsters had broken into her home, injured her, murdered her best friend, and were now proceeding to simply sit around the place, like it was theirs, waiting to kill the only people left to her in this world. She felt her limbs beginning to tingle, the anger galvanizing her resolve as she slowly opened her eyes. She would have revenge. She would end them all. Power that she didn't know drove her to her feet, chilling her whole body so that her breath came out in a mist before her. She felt the chill in her soul, granting her strength, though where it came from was still a mystery. She pushed the thought away, she would question the why later, after it wasn't needed. For now she just focused, turning her eyes to the mass of masked bodies before her. Jane was there, unconscious on the floor and a man, if you could call him that, was standing over her, a mass of red mist hovering in the air before him. The Aether. So this was Malekith. She noticed, somewhere under the burning anger and freezing power, that he was not as big as she thought he'd be. He seemed almost small to her now, something to be "handled".

His eyes leveled on her as she began to move, no doubt wondering what she hoped to accomplish, weak thing that she was. But he didn't know. He didn't understand that she was so much more than that right now. She had taken power from something far greater than herself, and she intended to use it to lethal effect. Two soldiers charged her, intent on subduing her. They never got the chance. She gestured, simply waved a hand to them, and they fell, frozen and dead. More came and she dispatched them just as quickly, littering her living room with frozen elven corpses, their featureless masks cracking so that the dark skin below was exposed. Malekith stilled any further movement, allowing the Aether to hover before him as he moved forward. He raised a hand, intent on ending her himself, but as met with an icy blast of air that surrounded both the Aether and himself in a sheet of solid ice. It began to chip almost immediately, his own power rising to meet that which she had borrowed, but she didn't give him a chance to recover. The Aether broke free first, swarming around its creator in an almost protective gesture, taking the brunt of the next blast, icy shards, sharp as knives. Malekith cried out as his body came free, several of the shards now imbedded in his arm and shoulder. They began to melt instantly, dripping a pinkish tinge onto the grey carpet.

He turned to her, ripping the remaining shards from his arm, dark blood dripping down to mix with pink. She had a moment to wonder where the pink had come from, if he didn't bleed red, before she realized. The cold was beginning to retreat inward, the shards had not just manifested from her hand, they had come through her hand. She looked down to see the hundreds of needle sized marks beginning to well up with fresh, scarlet blood. It shook her resolve enough for Malekith to get one hit in edgeways. It was all he needed. His weapon connected with her hip hard, slamming her sideways into the table. Her body bent around it as it was upset and thrown to the side, sending her tumbling to rest at the mouth of the hallway, stunned and injured, the power fading quickly away from her. But she had wounded him, kept him from absorbing the Aether, and she heard, just as her consciousness began to fade, the tell tale scream of an enraged Asgardian prince. Her vision was blinded with light as her eyes closed, but she thought she saw a figure approach her, a mass of wavy black hair tumbling into her face as a body collided with hers.

* * *

Loki was the first in the room, charging forward and gathering up the women, shielding them as best he could with his body as his brother showered the room with great forking strikes of lightning. It was enough to make his skin shiver as the power swarmed around him. Malekith let out a shriek of pain, gathering the cloud in a mass around him and fading from the room as if he'd never been. The soldiers, now beginning to thaw, lay in pools of frigid water, their bodies still and lifeless. It was the coldness that brought both brothers down from their battle high and grounded them in the present. The apartment had been utterly destroyed. Furniture was upturned, broken, there were blood smears over the carpet and corpses everywhere.

"Who did all this?" Thor looked around, seeing the last of the melting frost on the walls. It was like something he'd seen his brother do, but only when pushed to the absolute limit. Loki didn't respond, something that was odd for him after a battle. He was fixated on Riley, staring down at her with something akin to awe on his face. Thor came even with his brother's kneeling form and drew in a breath of surprise. Her body was slowly fading back to human color, the faint traces of icy blue runes receding back under the small shirt she wore. Her hands were bleeding badly, the skin looking like it had been ripped through with glass, or ice. Her wrists and ankles were blackened and her side was burned. She looked as if she had been in battle.

"I think she did." Loki's response was soft, his body moving slowly to pick up the limp form and carry her away from the carnage around them. "See to the scientist brother, and get rid of these things. I will watch them." He disappeared into the bedroom, returning a moment later for the still unconscious Jane. Thor growled softly, not fond of the idea of leaving the woman he loved with his vengeful brother. But it had to be done and the last thing the women would want to wake up to would be a room full of corpses. He sighed, setting his hammer on the ground and piled the elven corpses up, two or three at a time, and carries them to the window at the end of the outside hallway, chucking them out and into a dumpster. They did not deserve a proper burial, they were without honor and thus they would be disposed of. James, on the other hand, gave him pause. He hadn't gotten to know the little man very well, too busy trying to prevent this very thing from happening, but he had grown fond of him none the less. His strangeness reminded Thor of Erik Selvig, if he'd been about thirty years younger. He felt his heart lurch at the thought of what Riley would go through once she awoke. Thor lifted the body carefully, examining the expression on his face. He looked peaceful, like he had been unaware of his impending death. That was a small blessing at least. The man had died happy, surrounded by friends, and good food. It was a good death.

Thor stepped to the window, hoisting the body up over his shoulder and taking off from the small cement window sill, going to the nearest cemetery and finding a small, out of the way corner, someplace no one would check. He laid the body out, creating a small hole, about five feet deep, wide enough to comfortably fit the scientist's thin frame, and lowered the body into it. He resettled the earth, smoothing as best he could and went in search of a marker. He found a large stone, something he would have been happy with as a grave stone, were it him in the ground, and carved ancient runes of protection into it, imbuing it with a small modicum of his power, just enough to make sure the grave was not disturbed, and sunk it into the ground at the head of the grave. It was not the warrior's memorial he would have wished, but it was the custom of the people of the world and it would give Riley a place to say goodbye.

With the deed done, he took off, anxious to get back to the apartment complex, to his Jane. It was not a long trip, he had spent maybe an hour on the task, but as he neared the street where Riley's building sat, short against all the taller complexes around it, he saw that the building had vanished. Loki stood atop the building, his hands moving in slow circles. He landed beside his brother, trusting that there was something solid below him upon which to stand and stood, silent and patient.

"They are sleeping. I have seen to Riley's wounds and your precious Jane is already recovering from the Aether's damage." He didn't say anything further, simply finishing the spell he had been weaving and moving to the now invisible door that would lead back to the inside hallway of the complex. Thor followed, still in silent thought, his mind once again on the problem of the Aether and how to stop it. The apartment was warmer than it had been when they arrived, the stains and water were gone, the blood wiped clean, the furniture reset and mended and Thor caught himself looking at his brother with something akin to surprise. Loki had mended the whole place, hidden or removed the evidence of the struggle and, this drew his attention, though he didn't understand why, replaced the Rune stones on the woman's altar. It was a small detail, but it pulled a small smile to Thor's face as he looked at the frost giant next to him. He sighed, going to settle on the couch, his head dropping to the armrest, already heavy with weariness. He saw Loki disappear down the hall, presumably to check on the girls, and then he knew no more.

Loki stepped into the darkened bedroom, watching the lengthening shadows play over Riley's face. He'd felt her, on his way here, he'd felt her in his mind. She'd seen his mind for what it truly was, seen his soul, and she had touched it. She had taken it into herself. He felt for the familiar pain, the old resentment and anger that had driven him for so long. It was still here, fueling his power, but it was less than it had been, smaller, quieter. He tested a few tricks, just to see if his power, too, had lessened, but found that it was stronger. He felt it flow more freely than he had in years. It was like something had been choking it, letting it out in small doses, greedily hording it for that one moment when he would truly shine. But now it was there, at his fingertips, frosty and soothing and calm, simply there. He looked to the woman again, feeling tears, true tears, well up in his eyes for the first time since he had confronted Odin about his true parentage. He felt something, he couldn't quite name. Was it gratitude? She had taken something from him, a burden that he had not known how to be rid of, that he had not known was weighing so much on him. She had simply taken it from him and used it. She had wrought such terrible vengeance on those creatures that he had felt a spark of pride, somewhere in the mass of anxiety he'd felt at seeing her blue, limp body splayed almost unnaturally against the floor. It was all so new to him now. His shield, so carefully constructed of shattered pride and rock hard anger, was gone, blown apart by one simple human mind.

He reached out to her, his hand brushing against her skin, now comfortably warm against his hand and sighed. He had taken something of hers, and she had returned the favor. It was almost comical. But what wounds had she received for her troubles? He had burns and scratches to show for his attempted theft, though the damn stones had never worked for him properly anyway. But what would she have. Her physical wounds were enough to show that she had indeed used his power. He felt another spark of pride at that thought. The human woman who could match wits with him and worshiped an effigy of him was also the first human to ever harness the power of his people and not die for the attempt. But it was a cold destructive thing, it was not meant for such a warm blooded and warm hearted people. It could very well end her, even now, if she ever reached for it again. He could feel a tiny spark of it left, nestled just behind her heart, seated in her own, much warmer and more abundant energy, hiding, recharging. It would have to be dealt with. But for now he would let her rest, and grieve. He sighed again, his chest feeling oddly light and heavy at the same time, and stood from his kneeling position. He searched him memory for when he had knelt beside her, why he had been so close to her, but found no explanation. He was just tired. It was hard work, covering an entire building wish both barrier and concealment magicks. He would sleep now, and worry later. For the first time in far too many years, he had peace of mind, and he intended to enjoy it before more problems ruined it for him.

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Well there you have it, chapter 5. Hope you all enjoyed it! Review s'il vous plait and thanks in advance to any who give feedback!


	6. His Time and Her Time

This chapter brought to you by "Let It Go" from Frozen. You may or may not be able to see the influence -wink-. Not as fast an update as last time but I had to do some major editing on this one. I wrote it at around three in the morning, and it suffered from my lack of caffeine and sleep. Anyway, on to the thanks, just two this time, but an awesome two so cyber cookies go to:

bella cullen the original  
Nessa191

You guys rock and make me feel so happy. I hope this chapter is more to everyone's liking and please R&R! I really wanna know what people think of this!

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His Time and Her Time

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Jane was up first. She all but bounded out of the room, a mixture of happiness and anxiety on her face. Thor caught her up in a tight embrace, kissing her softly. Loki groaned in the background. Sometimes he wished he had someone, just so he could torment his brother with overt displays. But a part of him couldn't really begrudge his brother his love. He would want to show the world as well, if he had something that pure. Jane launched into an explanation of what had happened. How Malekith had broken into the apartment and taken out both Riley and James. She mentioned how Riley had been going for a knife, even as she was struck and Loki felt another shock of pride. Why did he care so much what this human did? It was stupid to be feeling pride for so low a being. Still, she was beginning to earn his very grudging respect and he was unsure how he felt about that fact.

Jane had to pause as she spoke of James, her eyes glistening with tears as she described it. Apparently, he hadn't even had time to realize something was wrong before on of the soldiers had ended his life. Both Thor and Loki growled at this. It was the worst crime one could commit in battle. You always faced your enemy. Loki had a personal code about what was allowed after that, sneaky underhanded tricks being his stock and trade, but he always let his opponent know that his death was imminent. To simply kill a man, no warning, no chance to defend himself, it was despicable and worthy of the messy death the soldiers had suffered. He shook himself out of his thoughts, rejoining the conversation in time to hear about how Malekith had tried to convince Jane out from under the table by breaking a few more of Riley's minor bones. Jane guessed a couple fingers and a rib from the sound of things, but she couldn't be sure.

Loki rolled his eyes and the story paused yet again as Jane inquired several times of the the state of Riley's own health. It took several reassurances from both Thor and himself, as well as a very quick account of his treatment before she would move on. Finally, she came to the meat of the subject. Malekith had listened for her breathing, something that Loki could remember doing more than once, and dragged her from under the table. He'd proceeded to threaten and bluster, Loki felt safe tuning this part out, rejoining the conversation once she'd finished relating how scared she was, and perked up at the mention of the Aether. So he hadn't yet absorbed it. That meant it was still vulnerable. It was enough for him to devote his entire attention to the conversation.

After he's pulled the Aether from her, he'd tossed her to the side, intent on killing her once he'd absorbed the Aether. His men had been moving the bodies to the side, so that when the inevitable fight happened, they wouldn't be underfoot. Jane remembered thinking that Riley had been dead, she was so still, her breathing practically stilled. But that was when she saw the rings appear on the girl's exposed wrists and ankles. They had simply blackened, the line starting at one side of her wrist and twisting around to form perfect circles on her skin. She'd twitched slightly, her face screwing up into something like a mixture of pain and fear before relaxing into corpse-like stillness. It took another minute or two to get to the part he really wanted to hear. Jane shook as she recounted the battle.

It had been so quick and terrifying. Riley had begun to move in earnest, her hand searching out James' next to her. She'd tried to wake him, not realizing he was dead. After the realization set in, her body had stilled once again, but it had felt wrong somehow, like the lack of wind before a thunder storm. Then, she'd simply been standing, her skin blue and carved with runes and lines. Her eyes had turned a icy white, ringed with red and her face had been a mask of anger. Jane remembered feeling afraid for herself. Riley looked like an avenging angel, come to take retribution against those who'd wronged her. She remembered the first charge, the two elves had run forward, weapons firing, but the energy seemed to just stop, fading before it hit her. She'd opened her mouth in an ungodly scream and whipped them aside, flash freezing them both. The scream never stopped. She must've taken a breath at some point, no one can scream that long without air, but Jane couldn't remember it. She just remembered the hellish sound, reverberating around her as body after body fell around her, and then there was silence. She'd looked up, seeing Riley looking down at her own hand, the anger finally bleeding away from her features. Malekith had come to his feet at some point, he was now holding his shoulder. Jane said icicles had been embedded in it. Loki felt a smirk cross his face at that. She'd actually hurt him then, good girl.

Jane paused, her whole body shaking in her lover's arms. She had to stop and gather her thoughts before continuing. It had been horrible to watch this far, but she knew she might be needed. She hiccuped as a sob fought its way out of her. Loki wondered at this, listening as she apologized to them both for losing the Aether and not protecting Riley better. The little mortal actually felt responsible for this? He sighed softly, waiting for her over active conscience to subside. After a few minutes of calm breathing and whispered reassurances from Thor, she continued. Malekith had pulled one of the ice shards from his arm, dropping it into the pink tinged stain. Jane remembered being confused by the color of his blood. But as she looked up, she saw Riley's hand was practically pouring blood, the skin looking beyond abused. And then Malekith had attacked, swinging a club like weapon into her side. She flew into the table, her body bending into an unnatural angle, carrying the table over in its momentum and causing her to tumble to the floor where they'd found her. Jane had taken that moment to move over to her, ready to shield her with her own body if needed. But that was then they'd arrived and she'd dropped into blessed unconsciousness.

The retelling proved too much for her composure and she collapsed into tears against her lover's chest. It was enough to drive Loki from the room. He had known that Riley had used his power, had taken out far more opponents than she should have been able to, but the description had sounded like something out of a nightmare. What had his power done to her? Why had she been screaming? What had she seen when she was inside him?

That thought brought something to the fore of him mind, something he'd been ignoring to this point. He could still feel a glimmer of her presence inside himself. It was an odd sensation. It was like a channel had opened, a clear moving stream, held grounded by a bed of smooth stones. It always seemed to come back to that with her. She'd been stalwart, if shaken, when they'd first arrived. She'd suffered his every whim and question with unshakable purpose. It was as if she were a stone, surrounded by water, grounded but fluid, adaptable. And now he felt it, within himself. She had left something in the place of his anger, when she'd taken it. She'd left a part of herself behind. It was oddly comforting, but disturbing at the same time. What would this do to him? What had it done to her? There were too many questions and no answers. He felt himself beginning to circle frustration, his mind spinning around all the possible outcomes of when she awoke. He knew one thing for certain, it would not be easy.

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Riley was back on the beach, but the water was no longer green. It was blue and clear and cool against her skin, small pebbles gently pressing into her back, arms and legs, massaging the cold and pain from her. It was like something was slowly draining out of her, not leaving, just separating. It traveled through the water, leaving a visible trail of fast melting frost in its wake, going to take refuge in the icy depths of her power. She knew of those depths, knew they existed, in theory, but had never dared dive that deep. Her grandmother had warned her once, when she was a child, that sometimes stories existed for a reason. It had been after her education about the Norse mythology, the frost giants, the gods battling against each other. It had all fascinated her, but nothing more than the power of the Trickster God. She'd asked one day, if she could one day be that powerful. If, instead of mild energy work and kitchen witchery, she could be a real sorceress like in her books. Her grandmother had merely smiled and said...

"People aren't meant to have that kind of power little bean." The voice was so close to her, like it was coming from the warm sand under her head. It wasn't until the feet dug into the sand beside her that she realized she wasn't alone. She sat up out of the water, slowly scooting back to sit even with the older woman.

"Mammaw, what is this place? How are you here?" She turned to look into the wrinkled face and felt a soft sadness well up in her. She'd missed that face so much.

"This is you sweety." She gestured to the vast ocean. "This is your soul, your power. Look how much there is. I always said you were somethin' special didn't I?" She smiled, the crow's feet at the corners of her eyes deepening.

"I never did understand what you meant by that. I still don't. How can this be me? Where does it stop? How is it all here?" She looked around, feeling a breeze kick up as her worry rose.

"Cause there's more to you than there is to you. Remember that line? That movie used to make you laugh so much." The old woman laughed softly, the breeze picking up fine tendrils of white hair.

"Yeah, The Producers. You made me watch it after I didn't get into the school play. It rained for a week straight." She smiled, the wind settling into a gentle swirl. "I guess you're gonna tell me that was me too huh?" She looked over, a wry smile on her face.

"Nope, it was April. But seriously bean, you need to figure this out. There's a man out there, like nothin' you've ever met. He's a difficult one, I'll grant ya, but baby girl he is worth every headache. You've seen him, the true him, felt him. You know what I mean." Her grandmother nudged her, wiggling her eyebrows at the young woman.

"Mammaw, you seriously need to stop doing that. One, you're old, so creepy. Second, you're dead, so eww. And yeah, I know what you mean. I did feel something. It was like I was here, in my mind, and I was pulled to somewhere else. It was dark there Mammaw, dark and cold and full of pain and sadness. I thought I was gonna drown in it. And then I came to and James was gone. I killed them Mammaw, I killed them all. Every last faceless elf. How could I do that?" She looked over at the woman, expecting the wrinkled face of her grandmother, but it was her mother, care worn but beautiful, staring back at her with a small smile on her face.

"We all do things we aren't proud of sweet heart. They were a threat, they'd killed your friend and meant to do the same to you. You defended yourself. Now, I'm not saying you couldn't have done it better, maybe a little less screaming and bleeding on the carpet, but still, its the thought that counts. You wanted to keep people safe and make sure that people who did wrong got what they deserved. Remember what I told you when you stepped on that bee that stung your friend Billy? Sometimes you get Karma, and sometimes, you _are_ Karma. Get it?" She winked, reaching an arm around her daughter's shoulders and pulling her close.

Riley closed her eyes, feeling the wind kick up even harder, the bright sunshine started to cloud over, the temperature beginning to drop. She wanted so much for this to be real, for the world to just stop, leave her behind so that she could live here, in her mind forever, wrapped in the warmth and love of her teachers and family.

"Oh hush now love. I know. You miss us and think it isn't fair that we were taken from you. That we left you to figure this out on you own. And you're right, it's not fair. But neither is life. The key to surviving it, and staying sane, is finding someone who can help you even the odds." Her mother's voice sounded faint, growing more and more distant by the second, and another hand replaced the warm smooth flesh of her mother. It was cold and heavy, like metal and leather, rubbing against her, pushing her back until she was laying down, rain and wind whipping above her. It was cool, but not cold, and, though she missed the calm sunshine, she thrilled at the change. She opened her eyes to see the grinning face of Loki above her. His hair was plastered back against his head and water dripped from his face, trailing down to his lips and chin. It sent a spark of pure desire down her spine and she felt something click into place. He helped her to her feet, holding her so close their faces were almost touching.

"Are you finished? Because we've got work to do."

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Thor found Loki sitting beside the bed, his hands steepled together as he regarded the changing expression on Riley's face. It seemed to be flashing through an entire conversation's worth of moods, all in a few minutes. Whatever she was dreaming of, it was definitely important. He pulled a small chest up next to the one his brother was seated on and waited for the other man to greet him. It took a moment but Loki eventually turned to look at him.

"Do you need something Thor?" He sounded tired and confused, something Thor hadn't heard in far too long. It gave his heart a pang of hope, hope that his brother, the man he'd grown up to know, was still in there somewhere.

"You seem, distracted, and different. What do you know that you aren't telling me?" He tried to keep the suspicion out of his voice, make it sound conversational, but could tell he had failed.

"Nothing world ending. It is personal, and I would prefer it remain that way." Loki moved to turn again, his mind already drifting back to whatever he had been considering before Thor had spoken.

"Loki, please. I know your better than you think. Something is troubling you, something you cannot figure out on your own. Perhaps I could help." He knew he sounded like a hopeful fool, but he felt like he was on the verge of regaining something he thought long gone. He expected a fight, a battle of wits and attitudes until Loki simply grew tired of his stubbornness. But the other man simply wilted, turning, a look of almost childish confusion on his face.

"She distracts me brother. I do not understand how one mortal could get further inside me than all the most talented magicians combined. Not ever Thanos was able to do what she has done. It should anger me, but the anger will not come to me. All I feel is pride and a kind of grudging respect that I never thought I would feel for anyone. But she is mortal, a midgardian, below me in every way. So how is it that she has done this thing that so many have attempted?" He looked truly lost, he knew. He shouldn't be sharing this, least of all with Thor, who would take it as an opportunity to play the elder brother once more. But he needed to get it out of his own mind before it drove him mad.

"I do not understand brother. What has she done?" Thor hated to ask, he feared that his brother would set on him like a wolf on a rabbit, but the man just sighed, seemingly relieved to simply be speaking with someone. He drew in a breath, closing his eyes as tears glimmered in them. It was heart breaking to watch, the battle of emotions that he fought to control. Thor respected, perhaps for the first time, what a complicated being his brother truly was. He had always made light of his emotions, playing off his magical abilities as simply a crutch to make up for his lack of physical power, but now he saw, it was power in and of itself. The only difference between Loki's magick and Mjolnir is that, if his brother lost focus for even a moment, his magick would swallow him whole. He began to understand now, how, perhaps, some of his brother's trouble, was, in point of fact, his fault. It was a painful realization, that he had caused some of the damage he so hated, simply by ignoring the needs of someone who'd been depending on him.

"Thor, you know nothing of magick, or magical powers, so I will attempt to be brief. At the heart of every magician, there is a well spring of power. This well takes many shapes, shifting to fit the user. My own well has long been a torrential place, a maelstrom of conflicting emotions and ideas. It is why I have always tended toward mischief, easy and relaxing. If another user were to reach my well, touch that part of my soul, they would know everything about me. They would see my memories, know all my secrets, understand my power, and, if they were so inclined, steal it from me. Riley has done this. She has reached my well. It happened while she was unconscious, during the struggle against Malekith. I don't think she understood what she was doing, what she was seeing. Her soul ran to the first point of power it could find, to hide from what was happening around her and stay safe from the stronger power that was seeking to conquer her." He took a breath, his hand pressed to his chest as if it hurt. Thor tried to keep the concern from his face, hide the fact that he wanted nothing more than to take his brother in his arms and hold on until he returned to the intelligent, funny and reliable man he'd known. Loki saw this and sighed, his eyes closing again, clearly fighting with himself about going any further. Thor began to form an argument, hoping to at least keep him talking, but it proved unnecessary.

"I said before that a strong enough user could steal my power from me, and that is true, but only with intent. Riley, has taken something from me, without intent. She merely saw it, judged that it did not belong, and pulled it away with her soul when it returned to her own body. But it was not my power, not truly. It was what I had convinced myself was necessary to remain strong." He looked up at his brother, not bothering to hide the tears anymore. He was more confused and conflicted than he could ever remember feeling.

"What did she take brother." Thor's face was a mask of interest and mild anger. He had a sudden urge to shake the woman awake and make her answer for herself.

"She took my pain. All the years of torment and shunning, it's gone." Loki's voice was almost to quiet to hear, but the message reached through none the less. Thor didn't know how to respond. His mind was reeling. No wonder he was acting so odd, something he'd carried for centuries, according to him at least, had been removed. He was trying to figure out who to be now. This was something Thor knew well. He started forward, intent on hugging his sibling until he could no longer breathe, only to be stopped by an invisible wall. A small smile appeared on his brother's lips, bringing back the face of the enemy he had known. "Not yet, brother. There is still much to do. Leave me now, I need to think." He turned his back entirely, his gaze returning to Riley in a decided gesture of dismissal.

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Riley ran after Loki on the beach. The rain all but blinded her as she tried to keep up but he never seemed to hear her when she asked him to slow down. He would just disappear around a bend or over a hill and she would fall, feeling suddenly exhausted, only to reappear beside her, helping her up with that same grin and pulling her along behind him once again. She wondered what the point of it was, they never seemed to get anywhere, but she was no longer feeling the crushing agony of loss and sadness, so she kept running. Perhaps she could outrun it all, the pain of James' death. The quiet sadness over her mother and grandmother. The fear of the world around her. Maybe she could just live here, run from it all and find a place to build a new life. She wouldn't really mind living in the raid. Sure it was a little cold, but the air around it was hot and muggy, so it was really like living under a water sprinkler in the summer. So long as she had a roof to keep her bed dry and a fire place to dry off by, she could be pretty damn happy here.

She'd slowed down as she thought, her wanderings weighing her down so that her feet felt like lead as she lifted them. She looked up, Loki was nothing but a shadow in front of her now, and she felt a sudden pang of fear, kicking herself for getting distracted. She redoubled her efforts, digging into the sand around her and shooting forward, her only goal, catching the green clad god before he left her behind again. It would seem that this was the key because before she knew it, she had drawn even with him, and then left him behind, racing ahead of him, down to the shore line and into the shallows. She didn't know why it felt right to do this, it just did. She looked up, her already soaked shirt now clinging to her chest and felt a stupid smile cross her face. Loki stood above her, everything but his tight leggings, magically gone. He slid down into the water beside her, his body radiating a kind of pleasant cold, like what you get on the outside of a pop can at a pool party. He didn't speak, merely sat beside her, one of his hands finding hers in the water and holding on tight. He held them up, showing her that the black ring on her wrist matched the white runic markings on his. She gasped, looking over at him, her face feeling suddenly hot.

"So it _is_ you." She couldn't keep the smile from her face as something settled in her chest, her heart felt almost weightless. No, weightless wasn't the right word for it. It was like the sensation you get when you are in water that is the perfect temperature. She felt, just right. There was no other way to put it. She felt ready. She didn't want to go, didn't want to leave the grinning god that seemed to exist only in her head, but she knew she had to wake up sooner or later. She gathered her breath and her will power and took a running dive into the deeper waters, swimming as far down as she could. The water got colder, heavier, she had to fight for each stroke. A light was shimmering on the sea bed, taunting her, teasing her with its nearness. She felt herself grin, her arms suddenly feeling feather light as she powered through the water, holding onto the rock at the bottom. The light was coming from a small crack in it. Through the crack she could see herself. Small time kitchen witch with delusions of grandeur that she had always been. Well, that was about to change. She reared back, driving both hands with superhuman force onto the rock, releasing all the pent up power into her conscious self, rejoining her body at last.

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Well, there it is, Chapter 6. Things are starting to develop and I hope you guys hang on to see what comes next! Please R&R and let me know what you think so I know what to fix and what to keep!


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